1. Presentation Title Speaker’s name Presentation title Speaker’s name From Hostel to Housing First Experiences by the Salvation Army in Finland Eero Untamala Y-Foundation

2. Salvation Army shelter in Helsinki before renovation 236 beds for temporary accommodation 1-4 beds in one room Shared and crowded bathrooms and kitchens 7 duty officers, 1 counselor + secretary and director

3. Government´s program on long-term homelessness in 2008-2011 Living is based on a normal lease Professional support services All shelters are closed down A program to convert shelters into homes – a roadmap to get financing and to develop a new operational model

4. Salvation Army was worried for the changes Fears of the Housing First model: possibilities to control will decrease, how to deal with disturbance Harm reduction – an old temperance association Economic risks in a big renovation project Number of beds will decrease Change in client profile: only long-term homeless, how about people who have ended up homeless recently?  Information and argumentation in understandable language. Both economic and theological reasons: “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.”  We recognised that we can´t help those who really need help  On the whole: a lot of discussions.

5. Combining old strengths with new demands Home, work and participation in making decisions about oneself and the residential environment Housing First principle, low-threshold work activities, community training Acknowledging the force of the community. We had already learned in the hostel that the force of the community is always stronger than individual interventions by a worker In a close community it is possible to get support in basic skills in joining a community and acting in it. These skills are needed in social integration

6. Renovated and new premises 112 flats and room for services in a block of flats in 2011 (Y-Foundation) A facility for short-term emergency housing (54 beds) in 2011 86 flats and room for services in the old shelter building after renovation in 2012 A new block of 34 flats and room for services in 2014 (Y-Foundation, City of Espoo)

7. A huge cultural change for tenants and the staff An open dialog instead of authority and control – in 2010 there was a shelter and 7 duty officers – in 2011 there were flats, 35 social and health care workers Tenants are taking part in planning and decisions about their lives Intention to understand the logic in tenant´s action, deliberating and studying together Tenants are invited to be partners in development work, decision making and in sharing their expert knowledge

8. Cultural change for the tenants An overnight change from control to active partnership Understanding one´s rights as tenant and client It took a while to join a community in which things and decisions are made together

9. Cultural change for the workers A joint decision of the staff was the basis for the change: this internal change process was started 2 years before closing the shelter Individual pathways to training for the staff Unskilled staff started training and work in emergency housing which became a learning environment for social support work Housing First philosophy and harm reduction were challenges for trained workers Learning the conformities of law in a community and integrating elements of community training with the harm-reduction approach Adopting the idea of both/and instead of either/or and tolerating incompleteness Giving up the position as an expert towards not-knowing

10. Input in training Basic examination in social and health care as apprenticeship training for untrained staff One-year apprenticeship training in community education for the whole staff Group work-counselling for teams – work-counselling in community training – harm reduction – housing first

11. All we had learned so far could be utilized in starting the congregate housing facility Väinölä in 2014

12. Väinölä Tenants took part in selecting the staff A joint one-week initiation period for the tenants and the staff before moving in – the workers didn´t meet each other before this week – true understanding of the basic idea, making house rules and planning decision making processes together – orientation in the functioning of a community Support workers are not allowed to deliberate tenant´s treatment without the person being present A unique culture of working together and sharing responsibility was created Feeling of stability and security encourages to take new steps in life

13. Thank you!